Trick or Treat
by rhymenocerous
Summary: A little bit of D/L Fluff for Halloween. Lindsay opens her door for some Trick-or Treaters and ends up getting a little treat herself. Takes place pre-D/L. Hope you enjoy, and Happy  belated  Halloween!
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: Happy Halloween, everyone! I realize that not everyone celebrates Halloween, and that by the time I post this, it's not technically Halloween anymore… but oh well. Better late than never, right? I was just enjoying my own Halloween festivities when this little story popped into my head and I just had to get it down. **

**It's not much, just a little bit of D/L fluffy fun. I hope you enjoy!**

**Disclaimer: Not mine. Never were. Never will be. Sigh.**

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"Trick or treat!"

"Oh, my God! You guys are just too cute!" Lindsay exclaimed as she doled out a handful of candies to the crowd of miniature goblins and ghouls crowded around the front door of her apartment.

"We're not cute, lady," a particularly gruesome skeleton informed her. "We're really scary."

"Oh, right. Sorry," Lindsay said, smiling. "Wow. Really… you're just horrifying. So gross."

"That's better," the skeleton said as he accepted the proffered candy. He looked down into his bag, nodding his satisfaction with her offering. He looked back up at Lindsay, cocking his head to the side. "What are you supposed to be?"

Lindsay looked down at her costume. She was particularly proud of it, having spent the better part of the past two nights working on it.

"I'm a strand of DNA," she replied.

"That's not very scary," the skeleton informed her.

"Well, what if I told you I was mutant DNA?"

"Oh, cool! Like in X-Men?"

"Sure," Lindsay laughed. "Just like in X-Men."

"Wow! Neat!" the skeleton said.

"Okay, you guys be good and have fun," Lindsay said, as the group high-tailed it off down the hallway to the next apartment.

"We will. Thank you!"

Lindsay smiled to herself as she closed the door. She checked her watch, noting the time. It was getting to be pretty late and she figured that she'd probably seen the last of the Trick-Or-Treaters for the night. She glanced down into her bowl of candies and shrugged her shoulders as she realized there were only a few pieces left.

"Why not?" she mused aloud to herself, taking the bowl into the living room and plopping down on her couch. She grabbed a treat-sized Kit Kat bar and was about to unwrap it when there was a knock at the door. She sighed, setting the candy down on the coffee table and pushing herself back up from the couch.

The knock sounded again, louder this time.

"Yeah, yeah. I'm coming," she muttered to herself. She peeked through the peephole, seeing a little boy dressed as Batman and a man dressed as Beetlejuice standing in the hall. "Happy Halloween," she said, opening the door.

"Trick or treat!" Batman said, holding out his pillowcase. She smiled down at him before upending the bowl and dumping the last of her candies into his bag.

"There you go, Batman," she said.

"Wow! Thank you!" he said, his eyes wide with delight at the goodies he'd collected. "Danny! Did you see how much candy she gave me?" he asked excitedly. "Did you see? Did you?"

"Yeah, buddy. I saw," Beetlejuice said, and Lindsay's head shot up. She recognized that voice.

"Danny?" she asked. "Danny Messer? Is that you under all that makeup?"

"Hey, Montana! You like?" he said, turning on the spot to give her a good look at his costume.

"Wow, yeah. That's pretty amazing," Lindsay remarked. She had to admit, she was impressed. Danny had never really struck her as the kind of guy that would really get into Halloween, and his costume was quite impressive. Her heart sank just a bit as she realized that it wasn't something he could have done on his own. His girlfriend – what was her name? Sandy? Cindy? Something like that – had probably helped him.

"Doesn't Danny look awesome?" Batman asked, interrupting her thoughts. "Me and my mom helped him. She had to work tonight, and Danny promised to take me Trick-or-Treating. He didn't want to wear a costume, but I made him. We watched Beetlejuice on TV last week and I wanted to be him, but my mom already bought me Batman, so Danny said he would dress up..."

As Batman rattled on about how he and his mom had come up with Danny's costume, Lindsay wracked her brains, trying to remember if Danny had ever mentioned his girlfriend having a kid. She didn't think he'd ever said anything about it – not that he would. It wasn't really any of her business.

"Whoa, Ruben, buddy. Remember to breathe," Danny chuckled. He looked up at Lindsay and smiled. "So, DNA? That's pretty geeky, Monroe."

"Shut up, Messer," Lindsay said, grinning at him. "I'll have you know that I am mutant DNA, which I have on good authority, is pretty cool."

"What's DNA?" Ruben asked, looking up at Danny for an explanation.

"Um… well, it's like blueprints, buddy," Danny said, bending down to Ruben's level. "Everybody has DNA, and it's what makes us all different. It's what tells your body what you're going to look like and how you're going to grow."

"Oh. Just like the dinosaurs from Jurassic Park?"

"Yeah, bud. Just like that."

"Cool!" Ruben said.

"Very cool," Danny said, straightening up and giving Lindsay a wink, causing her to blush.

"Danny. Come on," Ruben said, grabbing Danny's hand as he tried to drag him down the hall. "We've only got half an hour before mom gets home from work, and I need more candy!"

"Okay, okay," Danny said, rolling his eyes at his young companion. "Jeez Louise, Ruben. Just gimme a sec, alright?" Ruben crossed his arms over his chest, tapping his foot on the floor as he glared up at Danny. "Tell you what, buddy. You can go Trick-or-Treat at that door there, and I'll say goodbye to Lindsay. Then we'll go on to the next floor together, alright?"

"Sweet!" Ruben said, dashing off down the hall and knocking on Lindsay's neighbour's door.

"He's cute," Lindsay said, a smile on her face as she watched Ruben hold out his pillowcase for the next batch of candies.

"Yeah. He's pretty awesome," Danny said. "Him and his mom live across the hall from me. His dad's not around, and I think he kind of misses having someone to do, you know, guy stuff with. So I look after him when Rikki's working late, and sometimes on weekends we'll just hang out, play baseball in the park. That kind of thing."

"Oh," Lindsay said. "So… he's not… I mean, his mom and you…" she felt her cheeks burning as she stumbled over her words.

"What? Me and Rikki?" Danny asked. "Nah. She's a nice girl, and Ruben is an amazing kid, but they're just friends."

"Oh. And what about… um… Sandy?"

Danny looked confused for a moment, then realization hit him. "Oh, you mean Cindy?" he asked. He shook his head, giving an exaggerated shudder. "Over and done," he said.

"Oh. That's too bad." Lindsay hoped that he didn't hear the relief in her voice, that he couldn't tell that deep down inside, she was doing celebratory cartwheels.

"Yeah. Not really," he said, giving her a little grin. He was about to say more, when Batman bounded back up to him, shoving his pillowcase in Danny's face.

"Look what I got, Danny! Danny, look! Look!"

"Yeah, buddy. I'm looking!" Danny said. "Wow, that's a lot of loot you got there. What do you say we call it a night? We can hit a few places on our way back home, and then you can show your mom all the stuff you got, okay?"

"Can I have some of it now, Danny? Can I?"

"Well… I don't know," Danny said. "We should really look through your candy before you eat any of it, make sure it's all okay. Besides, I don't think your mom would be happy with me if I dropped you off at home all hopped up on sugar."

"Please, Danny? Please? Just one piece?"

Danny sighed, looking to Lindsay for some help.

"Hey, you know what? Hang on a second. I might be able to help." She turned and headed back into her apartment, emerging a moment later holding the tiny Kit Kat bar she had been about to eat herself before Batman and Beetlejuice had come knocking at her door. "Here," she said, handing the treat to Ruben. "I know for a fact that this is a good one."

"Thanks!" Ruben said. He paused and looked up at Danny before unwrapping the chocolate.

"Go ahead," Danny said, patting Ruben on the top of the head. He turned to Lindsay and offered a smile. "Thanks, Montana."

"No problem," she said, grinning as Ruben stuffed the candy into his mouth. "You two have fun, and maybe I'll see you again sometime, okay Ruben?"

"Mmm hmm," he said, his mouth full of chocolate.

She smiled as Danny turned, taking Ruben's hand in his and the two of them walked down the hall toward the elevator. She was about to close the door, when she heard Danny calling out to her.

"Hey, Montana!"

"Yeah?" she asked.

"What are you doing later?"

"Um… nothing."

"Well, I'm just gonna drop Ruben off at home, and I thought… well, if you're not busy… maybe you might wanna watch a movie or something?"

"What did you have in mind?"

"I don't know," he said. "Something scary. I was thinking Jaws? You like that movie?"

"Oh, my God! I love that movie!" Lindsay said.

"Yeah? Great," Danny said, a wide smile on his face. "So… I'll see you back here in an hour?" he asked hopefully. "Unless… unless you wanna come with us? We can watch it back at my place."

"That would be great, Danny," she said. "Just let me grab my coat."

Leaving the door ajar, she went back into her apartment, grabbing her coat from the hall closet and stuffing her feet into her shoes. As she flicked off the lights and grabbed her keys, she heard Ruben's voice out in the hall.

"Woo-oo! Danny's going on a date!"

"Shh! I am not!"

"Are too!" Ruben sing-songed. "You like her!"

"Quiet, squirt, or I'm gonna have to confiscate all your candy."

"I think she likes you too," was Ruben's reply. "And what does confiscate mean?"

"Shh!"

With butterflies fluttering in her stomach, Lindsay pulled her door closed behind her, locking the deadbolt before she turned to see Batman and Beetlejuice holding the elevator for her. She smiled at Danny and gave Ruben a little wink as she stepped in beside them, pressing the button for the ground floor.

**

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So, I'm thinking that this might be yet another two-parter, but I'm not sure. I'd love to hear back from you! Let me know… do you want more?**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: Thank you so much for your reviews for Chapter 1. As always, they made me smile and I was just so elated that you all seemed to enjoy the little story I threw together for Halloween. Thank you!**

**So, what are we doing here? Well, it would seem that you all wanted to see more from this one, apparently not satisfied with my subtle hints of what was to come. So, here we are, getting ready for Chapter 2. I hope you like it, that it gives you a little laugh, and maybe even a little bit of a scare! Mwa ha ha!**

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"So, what made you decide to be Batman?" Lindsay asked as the three of them walked down the street from the video rental place toward Danny's apartment building. Ruben walked in between the two adults, each of them holding one of his hands while Danny carried his now nearly overflowing pillowcase.

"I wanna be a superhero when I grow up," Ruben informed her.

"Oh, yeah? That's pretty cool."

"Yeah, I wanna be just like Danny. Did you know that he's a superhero?" he explained as he swung from their hands, kicking his legs out in front of him. "He works in this super cool lab where he catches bad guys. It's awesome. Just like the Bat Cave."

"Ruben…" Danny said, giving Lindsay a shy smile.

"What? My mom says so, Danny. She does!" the little boy insisted. Danny let out a sigh, apparently deciding against arguing with his young sidekick. "What do you do, Lindsay?" Ruben asked. "How do you know Danny?"

"Well, actually, I work at the lab too," she said. Ruben stopped in his tracks, gazing up at her with unabashed awe.

"Really?" he asked.

"Really."

"Wow. So you're a superhero too? That is so cool!" he said. He looked thoughtfully up at her for a moment, then he turned to Danny, tugging on the sleeve of his jacket. Danny bent down so that Ruben could whisper in his ear. "Danny, is she _the_ girl?" he whispered loudly. "The one that you talk about all the time?"

"Uh…" Danny said, glancing nervously in Lindsay's direction.

"I thought you said her name was Montana," he continued, oblivious to the awkwardness of the situation. He gave Lindsay a quick appraising glance, then turned back to Danny who looked like he was about ready to have a crack in the sidewalk open up and swallow him whole. "She's really pretty!"

"Uh… yeah. Yeah, she is," Danny mumbled, straightening up and staring down at his feet as the three of them continued on their way home. Lindsay felt almost giddy, her insides twisting with excitement as she processed what Danny and Ruben had been whispering about. Danny talked about her? All the time? And he thought she was pretty? Despite her best efforts to contain her glee, she felt a ridiculous smile spread across her face.

"So, Ruben. I was wondering," Lindsay said, trying to keep her tone conversational, "What brought you two to my building tonight? I mean, I live halfway across town. There must have been other buildings that were closer where you could have gone Trick-or-Treating."

They had reached an intersection and were waiting for the light to change so that they could cross the street. Ruben looked up at Danny, then at Lindsay before shrugging his shoulders.

"I dunno," he said. "We did our whole building, and then Danny said he wanted to try somewhere different. I didn't want to, but he said he'd give me five bucks if…" he smacked his hands over his mouth, looking up at Danny with wide eyes. "Whoops. I wasn't supposed to tell her that, was I?"

Danny rolled his eyes and shook his head. "Ruben, you're killing my game here, buddy," he said.

"Sorry, Danny," the little boy replied, hanging his head.

"It's alright," Danny assured him, taking Ruben's hand in his once again as they moved to cross the street. "I guess the cat's out of the bag now anyway."

Lindsay watched Danny out of the corner of her eye. She saw him glance up at her and she gave him a flirty little wink. He grinned back at her before turning his gaze back down to his feet.

They rounded a corner and approached Danny's building. Ruben let go of their hands and skipped along in front of them, stopping at the front door. Danny pulled out his keys and began searching for the one that would open the door, and Lindsay took the opportunity to sidle up beside him, leaning in close and whispering in his ear.

"Five bucks, Messer?" she asked. "Really? That's all I'm worth to you?"

"Shut up," he chuckled, shaking his head as he jammed his key in the lock. He held the door open for her and Ruben, then followed them inside.

Twenty minutes later, Danny and Lindsay stood out in the hallway, having just dropped Ruben off with his mother. Danny had made the introductions, and Lindsay hadn't missed the way that Rikki's eyebrows had shot up at the mention of her name. Apparently, Ruben wasn't the only one that Danny shared stories with about their time spent at work together. After several hugs from Ruben, during which he extracted a promise from Lindsay to stop by and hang out with him the next time she was over at Danny's, they had said their goodbyes and made their way down the hall to Danny's door. He turned the key in the lock and stepped into his apartment, flicking the lights on kicking off his shoes.

"I'm just gonna go wash this junk off my face," he said, nodding down the hallway. "Make yourself at home. I'll be right back."

Lindsay shrugged out of her own costume, draping it over a chair in the corner of his living room. She then took the opportunity to wander around his place. It was surprisingly comfortable, with a lived-in feel to it. The furnishings were masculine, but not overwhelmingly so, and Lindsay couldn't help but smile as she wandered into the dining room only to find herself face to face with a giant pool table that took up most of the space in the room. Somehow it seemed fitting that Danny would have a pool table in his home. She made a mental note to herself to tease him about it later… possibly after giving his ass a good hard kick the next time they played one another at Sullivan's.

She heard Danny muttering to himself in the bathroom, and she wandered down the hall and leaned up against the doorjamb, smiling as he scrubbed away at his face. The makeup had smeared, but it wasn't really coming off and she could tell he was getting frustrated.

"Need a hand, Messer?" she asked.

"Shit," he said, jumping at having her appear so unexpectedly behind him. "Jesus, Montana. You scared the crap out of me."

"Sorry," she said. "Just sounded like you could use a little help."

He sighed, leaning forward and peering into the mirror. "I just can't get this stuff off," he moaned.

"Well, what are you using?" she asked. He turned and looked at her as if she'd just asked the stupidest question in the history of stupid questions.

"Uh… soap. What else is there?"

She rolled her eyes at him. "Do you have any moisturizer?" Lindsay asked. Danny raised his eyebrows at her, giving her a disbelieving look.

"Monroe, I'm a guy," he said matter-of-factly. "We don't moisturize."

"Riiiight," Lindsay said, turning back to the living room where she had left her purse. "Because women love guys with scaly, leathery skin. It's such a turn on." She reached into her bag, pulling out the tiny bottle of lotion she kept there for emergencies and returned to the bathroom. "Here. Rub this on your face, let it sit for a minute, then wipe it off with a dry cloth."

Danny accepted the small bottle, eying it sceptically. He twisted off the top, giving the contents a sniff before scrunching up his nose in disgust. "Smells like flowers," he said.

"Come on," she chided him. "Suck it up, princess. It's just a little lotion. It won't kill you."

"So says you," he grumbled.

"Look, the way I see it, you've only got two options here, Danny," she informed him. "Either you use the lotion and you smell like flowers for a little while, or you show up to work tomorrow looking like the Crypt Keeper. The choice is yours. So what's it gonna be?"

Danny glared at her in the mirror before letting out a resigned sigh. He squeezed a small amount into the palm of his hand and began to dab it onto his face. Lindsay turned back to the living room, leaving Danny to finish cleaning himself up.

"You know," she said as she wandered around his apartment, "You're really good with him."

"Who?" he asked from the bathroom.

"Ruben."

"Don't sound so surprised," he mumbled. "Is it really that shocking that I'd be good with kids?"

"I guess not," she mused as she examined the books on his shelf. She was surprised to see a large assortment of classical literature mixed in with his motorcycle magazines and criminology and forensics text books. "I mean, you are just a big kid yourself."

"Ha, ha. Very funny, Montana. You're a riot," he shot back. "Remind me why I invited you over again?"

"Because you like me and you think I'm pretty."

She waited for a witty retort from him. When one didn't come after a few moments, she began to feel uneasy. She mentally kicked herself, wondering if she'd pushed their bantering too far. She remembered how embarrassed he'd been when Ruben had inadvertently revealed his secret to her. _Way to go, Linds,_ she thought to herself. _Why don't you try sticking your other foot in your mouth too? See how that one tastes._

"Danny?" she called out as she made her way back down the short hallway to the bathroom. "Danny, I'm sorry. I didn't mean…" she stopped in mid-sentence when she peered around the bathroom door only to find it empty. "Danny?" She turned in the hallway, taking a few cautious steps toward the only other door, which she assumed led to his bedroom. It was slightly ajar and she pushed it open, peering inside. It too was empty.

"Danny?" she called out again. "Danny, where are you?"

She re-entered the bathroom, peeking behind the door. Then out of the corner of her eye she saw it; movement behind the shower curtain. She lunged forward, taking hold of the fabric and snapping it aside to reveal… nothing. Perplexed, she furrowed her brow. If he wasn't behind the shower curtain, then where the hell was…

"Gotcha!" a voice whispered in her ear and Lindsay let out a blood curdling scream as she felt a hand on her shoulder. She turned to see Danny standing in the doorway, an impish grin on his face as he took in her startled expression.

"Shit! Danny!" she scolded him. "You scared the bejeezus out of me!" She placed her hand on her chest, taking a deep breath as she willed her heart rate to return to normal. "Stop laughing. It's not funny."

"It's kind of funny," he chuckled, shaking his head. "You should have seen your face. It was priceless!"

"You jerk," she said, letting out a slightly nervous giggle. "I thought you were hiding in the shower."

"Nah. That would be too obvious," he smirked. "I was just in the bedroom getting a change of clothes when I heard you looking for me… and when you went for the shower curtain, I couldn't resist. When am I gonna get another chance like that?"

"But the shower curtain," Lindsay said. "I saw it move!"

"Oh, that," Danny said, moving into the room to examine the shower curtain with her. "Yeah, didn't I tell you that this whole building is haunted?" He stared back at her, his blue eyes brimming with sincerity. "The ground we're standing on right now used to be an old Indian burial site. And sometimes, late at night…"

"Danny, stop it."

"What?"

"Stop trying to scare me."

"Why? Is it working?"

"Danny!" she pouted. "Please! Why did the shower curtain move?"

"Air vent," he said, grinning at her and pointing to the slotted vent in the ceiling. She rolled her eyes at him and pushed past him, heading back out into the living room and plopping down on the couch. She muttered to herself as she crossed her arms over her chest. She was still sitting in the same position when he emerged from the hallway a few moments later.

"Alright. Movie time!" She looked up to see Danny standing in front of her, rubbing his hands together. His face was now scrubbed clean and he had changed from his cumbersome costume and was clad in a pair of faded and well-worn jeans and a dark, hooded sweatshirt. He smiled apologetically at her, and she responded by huffing at him. Still, she was unable to stop herself from checking out his backside as he bent over to put the DVD in the machine, noting that the jeans he was wearing did all kinds of good things to his butt.

"You want some popcorn or something?" he asked, straightening up. "Or I could make us some nachos."

"Hmm?" she asked, still distracted as her thoughts lingered on the way his butt looked in those jeans. She shrugged her shoulders, not really wanting him to go out of his way on her behalf. "Whatever's easiest."

He rummaged through his cupboards, frowning at the contents before he turned and grinned sheepishly at her. "So… chips and dip okay?" he asked. "Apparently I need to go shopping."

"Chips and dip sounds great," she giggled as he grabbed a bag of chips from the cupboard and a container of dip from the fridge, along with a couple of bottles of beer. He carried them over to where she was sitting, setting them down on the coffee table before lowering himself down on the seat beside her. He popped the top of the beers and handed one to her. Before taking a sip, he held his beer out to her to clink against his.

"Cheers," he said.

"Cheers," she echoed.

"So… Jaws," he said, picking up the remote and pressing play. As the opening credits began to roll, he settled himself back on the couch and propped his feet up on the coffee table. "How many times have you seen it, Montana?"

"Enough," she replied, leaning back and crossing her legs as she sipped her beer. "I remember the first time I saw it. I must have been about seven or eight and I was so scared of the water, my mom couldn't get me to take a bath for a week."

Danny chuckled, his blue eyes shining brightly. "I bet," he laughed. "You dirty girl."

"Speaking of dirty," Lindsay said, "You missed a spot." She raised her hand, wiping his cheek with the pad of her thumb to get rid of the small smudge still clinging stubbornly to his skin. She felt him tense at her touch, and despite the fact that the smudge was now a thing of the past, she just couldn't seem to take her hand from his face. His cheek was stubbly under her fingers, and his skin felt soft and warm.

"Lindsay, I…" he began, swallowing hard before he shifted on the couch so that he was facing her. "I didn't bring you here to… I mean I don't expect… I just, I thought you might want to just hang out, you know?"

"I just realized something, Danny," she said, continuing to gently skim her thumb over his cheek. "You came Trick-or-Treating at my door, and I didn't give you anything. I gave Ruben his chocolates, but you never got your treat."

He opened his mouth to protest, but before he could say anything, Lindsay leaned forward and pressed her lips against his. She sighed as she felt his hand slide up her arm to gently cup the back of her head and her heart fluttered wildly in her chest as his mouth moved against hers. His lips were soft and she caught the faintest taste of his toothpaste on the tip of her tongue, mingled with the scent of the lotion he had used on his face.

Breathless, they pulled apart and Lindsay slowly opened her eyes to see Danny staring back at her. He licked his lips before giving her a shy smile. "Wow," he whispered.

"You can say that again," she breathed.

"Wow."

"Danny!" she giggled as he leaned forward to capture her lips again. She closed her eyes and leaned into him, wrapping her arms around his neck. All thoughts of the movie that was playing on the screen were instantly forgotten as she let herself get lost in his embrace, the two of them tentatively exploring one another on his couch.

When they finally broke apart - what seemed like hours later - she rested her head against his chest, closing her eyes as he laid his arm across her shoulders and held her close. They turned their attention back to the movie, surprised to find themselves nearing the dramatic climax on the high seas. Lindsay sighed as she nuzzled against him, and he ran his hand up her arm, giving her a little squeeze.

"What's up, Linds?" he inquired.

"It's just… I really love this movie, and now we've missed the best parts."

He chuckled and she lifted her head to look up at him, cocking her head to one side quizzically. "What?"

"Well, I guess we'll just have to rent it again," he said, using his forefinger to delicately trace the lines of her face.

"But what if we miss the best parts again?" she asked coyly.

"Would that really be such a bad thing?"

She smiled up at him and shook her head before craning her neck up and placing a kiss to his cheek.

"Happy Halloween, Danny," she said.

"Happy Halloween, Montana."

**

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And there you go. I hope you enjoyed it, I know I certainly did! It's been fun to just sort of get these short little stories out of my system as they come to me. I'd love to hear back from you, so please don't be shy!**

**Oh, and for those of you waiting on High School Daze… yes I am working on it. I'm hoping to have the next chapter up shortly. I'm finding myself getting really caught up in writing old school D/L, and that seems to be where my muse is going these days. So, HSD is still on the go, it's just been on the backburner for a little while as I try to get my thoughts straightened out when it comes to these other stories.**

**Thanks for your patience! You guys seriously rock!**

***rhymes***


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